This freezer ain't big enough for all of you!

Ok, so the salmon adventure begins! I was checking around on the internet for tasty, quick salmon recipes and came across a great stuffed baked salmon recipe which should help warm up our cold little appartment tonight! (the heating is centrally controlled and the landlord hasn't flicked the switch yet, oh the cruelty!)

anyway here it is.........pictures to follow so stay tuned!

Tasty Herby Baked Salmon

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium salmon fillets, (1.1 kilograms) skin on, scaled and pinboned
2 lemons
Bunch fresh marjoram
Bunch fresh dill
fresh basil
Handful stoned black olives
Bunch flat-leaf parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C/gas 6). Cut 5 lengths of string and lay them out on the work surface next to each another, leaving gaps in between. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the work surface, and drizzle with olive oil. Lay 1 salmon fillet, skin side down, on top. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the salmon, then, using a fine grater, grate the zest of 1 lemon over the top. On top of that lay the marjoram, dill, and basil, broken up, and the olives. Season the flesh side of the other salmon fillet with salt and pepper, and grate over the second lemon. Place 1 fillet on top of the other, thin end to thick, then tie them together and trim the string. Put the fish parcel on an oiled baking tray, and scatter over any remaining bits of herb. Thinly slice the 2 lemons and place on top of and round the salmon. Drizzle with olive oil, then roughly chop the parsley and sprinkle over the top. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes.
(c) Jamie Oliver 2002

Pre cooking Yum Yum Yum

for more great and varied salmon recipes go to thesalmons

Salmon as far as the eye can see!

First I have to say that the Salmon here in Sweden is so super tasty and they really know how to enjoy it too! However, like a lot of things here in Sweden, it can get quite pricey! So when my friend was shopping today and found it for 50kr/kg (AUD$7/kg) she got really excited and called us straight away offering to buy us some too!

Of course we said yes and a few hours later the phone rings. It's our friend telling us she's close and has the fish but she's in a hurry so can we meet her out the front of our building to complete the transaction! So David runs down to collect our baby but when he comes back, instead of the medium sized piece I'd expected, he's holding an entire salmon! I swear this thing must be about 50cm long and weighs about 2.5kg. I could be wrong, but that's a big baby!

So we set to work cleaning the scales away and cutting it into freezer friendly portions to eat for the next few weeks! So this post serves as a warning and a plea........

WARNING: there will be a lot of salmon recipes and salmon related information on this page for the next few weeks.

PLEA: if anyone has any inspired ideas of things to do with 2kg (guess what we had for dinner tonight!) of salmon I'll be your best fishy friend!

An apple by any other name........

Even though the temperature here in Stockholm is getting steadily lower (and sometimes with it, my mood) everywhere I look I see happy little apple trees heavily laden with pretty apples of all shapes, colours and sizes!

Because there are around 7 500 kinds of the humble apple it isn't surprising that they are easy to find pretty much all year round, but the best ones and the greatest volume are found during the autumn. (herein lies the silver lining for the impending crappy weather!)

The possibilites are really endless when it comes to something as simple as the apple, some, however, are apparently better suited to specific uses.

For PIES or STRUDLES the best varities are Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Jonathan, Pippin, York Imperial.

For BAKING WHOLE the best varieties are Jonathan, Northern Spy, York Imperial, Baldwin, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious.

And for APPLE SAUCE the best varieties are McIntosh, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Rome Beauty, Winesap.

Funny apple facts:

There is actually a kind of apple called McIntosh (second from the left on the bottom row)
Apples don't like personal contact - they keep longer if they don't touch each other!
Apples are actually a member of the rose family.
Archeologists have found evidence that people have been enjoying apples for more than 6500 years - some of the more famous enthusiast being the ancient Greeks and Romans.

more......

So do as the Romans used to and eat an apple!

Benvenuti tutti nella Cucina di Susina!

Ciao Ragazzi!

My name is Susan and I LOVE to cook! I'm still learning though, so this blog will be an adventure hopefully filled with more success than disaster! I am an Australian living in Sweden with my Italian boyfriend so expect to find a variety of culinary delights on this page, although there is a great demand for the Italian classics in my house!

I will add recipes with photos as I cook them in my own little kitchen well as information on seasonal ingredients and anything else related to cooking. I really welcome any advice from other cooking enthusiasts out there who would like to share recipes, sucess (or disaster) stories or handy tricks and tips that only a grandmother would know!

Did I mention that in an effort to improve my rather embarrasing Italian, I will write little bits and pieces in La Lingua dell'amore!

So, in great anticipation of things to come ........ Buon Appetito!

Ciao a Tutti!

Mi chiamo Susan e mi piace TANTISSIMO cucinare ma sto ancora imparando e allora spero che siano più i trionfi dei disastri! Però, in ogni caso, sarà un’avventura e mi piacerebbe se voi venite con me.

Sono Australiana ma adesso vivo in Svezia con il mio ragazzo italiano quindi, in questo blog, si trovano ricette da tutto il mondo (ma le italiane sono sempre le favorite a casa mia) così come le informazioni sugli ingredienti stagionali, cuochi famosi che mi piacciono e qualcosa di strano sull’arte di cucinare.

Voglio condividere la mia passione con tutti voi là fuori che siete come me e perchè sono ancora una principiante non vedo l’ora di imparare qualcosa da voi!

Mi piacerebbe che mi raccontaste le vostre storie, ricette preferite o i vostri segreti della nonna. Aggiungerò una ricetta con foto dopo averla fatta nella mia piccola cucina. Sto provando anche a migliorare il mio Italiano allora troverete qualche volta che ho scritto qualcosa così in Italiano!

Allora, aspettando le cose che verranno ............ Buon Appetito!